A Child's Best Friend
by tmnt-luver
Summary: Just a little story i thought of about when the TMNT's were five - Leo, Donnie, Raph and Mikey are in search of their favourite animals.


A Child's Best Friend  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"It's mine 'Waph!" A five-year-old Mikey shouted at his brother.  
  
"It's mine, Mikey!" shouted a five-year-old Raph back.  
  
"Mine!" Mikey argued.  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mine!"  
  
"Mi -."  
  
" - That is enough", came a voice behind the two arguing turtles.  
  
Mikey and Raph spun round to see their Master Splinter above them, his arms folded across his chest, he had his eyebrows raised at them. Leo and Donnie stood behind him, looking confused.  
  
"It's mine, Master Splin'er", Mikey said.  
  
"Yours is in your bedroom, this one's mine!" Raph said.  
  
Splinter raised his eyebrows even more at his sons. He stood in the middle of the living room area and looked around.  
  
"Michelangelo, where is your panda?"  
  
"'Waph got it!" Mikey nearly shouted, but stopped himself.  
  
"Have not!" Raph shouted.  
  
"Have to!"  
  
"Have not!"  
  
"Have t -."  
  
" - I said enough", Splinter interrupted, firmly but gently.  
  
Splinter looked in between his sons at the furry panda. He picked it up out of Raph and Mikey's hands and examined it. While he was doing that Mikey stuck his tongue out at his brother.  
  
Leo gave his brother in orange a stern look but said nothing. Donnie just tried to stop himself from laughing.  
  
"Umm", Splinter held the panda up in front of him. "I'm afraid . . . that this one is Donatello's", he said after a few minutes.  
  
Donnie looked at Splinter with puppy-dog eyes. "Can I have it?" he asked in his sweet voice. "P'wease?" he added.  
  
Splinter smiled and gave the panda to Donnie, who grabbed it and hugged it tightly with his little arms.  
  
Mikey frowned. "But . . . where's mine?" he asked, turning his gaze to Splinter, the same puppy-dog eyes as Donnie showing under his orange bandana.  
  
"Maybe yours is in your bedroom, Michelangelo. Same to you, Raphael . . . why don't you go look".  
  
"Ok!" Both turtles turned and ran out of the room, leaving Splinter and his two other sons alone.  
  
Splinter sighed and sat in his armchair.  
  
Leonardo came up to him and tapped his arm softly. "Something w'ong, Master Splin'er?" he asked. Donnie came up to him and stood behind his brother, his black and white panda covering nearly all his body except for his face.  
  
"No, Leonardo", Splinter answered softly. "I'm fine".  
  
"Sure?" Leo asked, his sweet little face looking concerned.  
  
"Positive, my son", Splinter said, putting his arms out and cuddling both of his sons, only half covering Donnie because his panda took up most of the space.  
  
"Why don't you go and play with your brothers for a while?" Splinter asked when he let them go.  
  
"Ok", Leo said, walking away.  
  
Donnie hugged his panda tighter.  
  
"C'mon, Donnie", Leo said, grabbing his brother's arm and pulling him gently to Mikey and Raph's bedroom.  
  
//  
  
"Mikey, Raph! What are w'ou doing?!" Leo shouted, when he walked into Mikey and Raph's bedroom.  
  
Mikey was lying flat on his stomach on the bedroom floor and Raph was lying on top of Mikey's shell, his little arms clutching a pillow.  
  
"Mikey tried to hit me with the pillow!" Raph said, getting off Mikey.  
  
"Was not! 'Waph the one with pillow!"  
  
Leo walked over to Raph and pulled the pillow out of his hands. "Stop it, 'cos Master will tell you off".  
  
Raph gave a quiet growl to his brother in blue then he frowned. "I can't find my panda, and Mikey can't find 'is . . . so we had a pillow fight".  
  
Donnie stood behind Leo, and, if possible, he clutched his own panda even tighter, as if Mikey or Raph were going to take it off him that very second.  
  
"Maybe it fell unda' the bed", Donnie said sweetly.  
  
"I looked", Mikey said, his head facing the floor.  
  
"Doesn't mean you pillow fight", Leo said. "C'mon, maybe it's in the kitchen - that where I put mine".  
  
//  
  
The four brothers walked out of Mikey and Raph's bedroom and entered the living room area. Splinter was sleeping peacefully in his armchair so Leo put a finger to his lips to tell his brothers to be quiet. Tiptoeing quietly around their Master, the four tiny turtles went to the kitchen and opened the door.  
  
"Panda!" Mikey half-shouted, half-whispered. He rushed over to the kitchen table where four chairs were laid out. Three panda bears faced the table and one was empty.  
  
Mikey grabbed the panda closest to him and sat himself in the chair. He hugged the panda tightly and grinned.  
  
Leo smiled and grabbed his panda. He sat on his chair, opposite Mikey and put his panda on the floor, letting it rest against the table leg.  
  
Donnie sat himself in the chair without the panda, next to Leo. He put his panda on the floor, managing to sit it up on its own, this, Leo found, was impossible.  
  
Raph just shrugged and grabbed his panda, putting it on the floor and letting it just flop back. He pulled out his chair and sat on it, his little fingers tapping the kitchen table.  
  
"Sorry 'Waph", Mikey apologised, knowing he blamed his brother for something that wasn't his fault.  
  
"What for, Mikey?" Raph asked, fingers still tapping the table.  
  
"Blaming you", Mikey said slowly, choosing his words.  
  
"S'ok", Raph said. Leo looked at him and Raph sighed and added, "I'm sorry too".  
  
Mikey grinned and clutched his panda closely to him.  
  
Donnie smiled. "At least we found our pandas. Mikey is the only one that loves his the most", being the smart one Donnie's smile widened. "He'll be the first to lose it".  
  
"Will not!" Mikey argued.  
  
"Will too!" Donnie said back.  
  
"Will not!"  
  
"Will too!"  
  
"Will n -."  
  
"Ok, stop", Leo interrupted.  
  
Mikey and Donnie frowned. "Sowie", they both said.  
  
"Well, it's true", Raph said, grinning. "A panda can be a child's best friend".  
  
//  
  
(Ok, this is just something I thought of - it's the first story I've ever done of them as youngsters - it's only short but that's how I planned it - I enjoyed doing it - and it kept me busy for a little while - hope you enjoyed reading it . . .  
  
. . . luv tmnt_luver xxXxx). 


End file.
